A small world (story)
This is a small world. There are smaller ones, but when categorized, we'd call this one small. It's a valley. Yeah, that's it. The valley in question is surrounded by mountains. Nothing behind. I am not trying to tell you that I just don't know, it is just nothing. Try to walk on it and you'll know what I mean. Nothing. From one of these mountains, a stream of clear water pours down to a lake. It's not a very big lake, but it is very very deep. The lake happens to be the home of a mermaid family, which nowadays is more like a whole clan. Cute little things... Next to the lake is a forest. You can find a wide number of leafed trees there. Of course, someone is using this area as a home too. No, not monkeys. Dryads. No, not those giggling little brats. They look pretty much like trees, but in a fairly human way. On the warm beach next to the lake, were the cliffs are heated by the sun, you'll see something I don't think you have ever seen before. Blue dragons. A little fatty, about 4 meters and without horns. They won't take much notice of you, unless you start to scream. And if you do, one of them will probably lift his or her oval head and look at you - just a little bit irritated - and ask you what the problem is. None of these three species are dangerous - but now if you dare, we'll walk over a big field of various herbs and plants. There are some small houses there, do you see them? That is houses built by humans. Guess what? There are also humans living in these houses. Or maybe cottage would be a better name for them? The walls are of wood and mud, steady but with a smooth finish. The roofs are of grass and no house has more than one floor. If you look in through the glassless windows, you would probably see a room decorated with that kind of odd knickknacks you can find in the home of an experienced traveller; little statues, textures in bright colours, jewellery and weapons on nearly every wall. If you happened to look through a kitchen window, you might see a man standing there cooking something. You will maybe also see a woman, polishing a sword, while she is joking with the man. We go a bit further. If you look up on the sky, there are dragons in the air. On their backs are humans. These dragons are not owned by the humans, they are simply friends and equals. Do you see that big mountain? Quite a big deal of the people seems to be heading against it. We follow them. You see they are walking straight through that rock? Well, it is not a rock. It's just a camouflage. Inside the mountain there are tunnels and chambers, all the way through and pretty deep down under it too. Like an ant heap. In there, the queen lives. Want to go visit her? Ok, but that will be to enter a whole new world... Unlike the bright day outside, these tunnels will first appear as spooky, I suppose. But stand still. Listen. Do you hear? In these tunnels you can hear the echoes from children laughing, conversations and somewhere, the cling of metal. Now when your eyes have adapted to the dim light, it doesn’t look so dark, huh? See that on the wall? It’s not a lamp. It’s a small, glowing stone. Don’t touch, it’s very hot! Feeling a bit chilled after the warm sun outside? Well, see that hole in the wall? Just a bit ahead. There is a stream of hot air coming out of it. It’s a small passage that go really deep inside the mountain, spreading the heat to all it’s levels. Don’t ask me how – I am no engineer. Here, the main tunnel is divided in two – up or down. But we really shouldn’t go down. They have the torture chamber there. Nothing for tourists. You hear the metallic sounds better now? Yeah, look into this room. This is where the humans in this world to their warrior training. About 75% of them are girls. But that has more to do with history – it just is that way. Boys do cooking and girls do fighting. Simple. And yes, those children are only ten years old. Have to start early. We go up yet another level. There are some guestrooms here, but most of the space is taken by the hospital area. Smell that? It’s some kind of tea that they use as painkiller and sleeping aid. It wouldn’t surprise me if it’s some kind of narcotic in it. Want to peak into a guest room? Okay, the doors are open! Since the guestrooms are as close to the mountain surface as possible, there are windows here. They’re a bit Spartan, but at least clean. Let us carry on! Next floor is one of the better, the kitchens. Smell that? Someone is making a lot of the national dish – a little bit of Everything- soup. Just chomp down anything you happened to have lying around and put it over the fire. There are a lot of tables in the room, and a lot of hungry warriors are waiting for their food. I think we better wait until they’re done. There is no door in to the actual kitchen, so you can see straight in there. Both men and women, but mostly men, are standing there in the heat of the stoves, making the food. Remember the guestroom I showed you earlier? The storage room is even bigger than that. There is now only one level left that we are allowed to visit. The library. Also this is a huge place, as you see. But look – there is a window between every bookshelf. The shelves and windows go all around the room. Yes, this whole room takes up a whole level in this place! You see the fire stove over there? It’s the only place without shelves. There is some furniture there. Some evenings, the librarian has a night of storytelling here, and both young and old gather to hear about past heroes. Look out the window – do you see? From here you can see the whole world – literally. The mountains, in a dim blue colour. The lake, glittering in the last rays of sunlight. The forest, gently moving under a light wind. And so, there are the houses, tiny and cottage looking, almost hard to see from here. This is a whole world – and it got it’s very own theme song. That deep, mighty sound of the dragons, as they sing to us. See also *Domdal (timeline) Category:All Pages Category:Needs a picture Category:Stories Category:World 20